Kaleidoscope
by Curseofbunny
Summary: An Ephedian prohibition era/soulmate AU, focuses on the political situation in Xeris during a completely non-canon au. Lev/Talia, Iris/Mephisto, Praxina/Auriana.


The pavestones glow where her feet touch them, which is a great thing for dark nights like this, but terrible for the way she wanted to look if anyone else happened to lay their eyes on her.

She wasn't interested in following the path back home, the one back to the straight and narrow. She'd been there, done that, and it was boring! The palace as it was stood for everything she didn't believe in, everything she was sick and tired of seeing.

Enter Talia Hellenez, secondborn princess of the Xerin crown, currently on one of the capital's backstreets, tracing routes she remembered too well to do something that would disappoint her mothers. It wasn't easy, being a princess. In the sense of wanting things, she always had whatever she asked for, that much was true. But it was hard to stay within the lines, to do everything perfectly and exactly as asked. At the end of the day, she'd realized she wanted nothing to do with the way her mothers did things. They had her older sister, Izira, anyways, they didn't need the spare.

The streets themselves were calm, especially at the late hour. Since her mother's last piece of legislation, the people calmed down on the surface. Just underneath, however, was the truth of the matter.

She passes a doorstep that leads to a club, one she knows well. Then there's the little shop with the secret menu, and there's the house that offers its rooms for a price, privacy to lose your mind for a few hours.

With the rest of their lives piling up, it was hard not to look for something to let them escape. Even if their homes were too deeply rooted in tradition to leave, there hadn't been any rules against finding some kind of release.

Enter the Borealins.

Talia had never found out specifically who created them, but the foreign drugs were very popular in Xeris. They weren't like wine, something you drank to get yourself to sleep, something social and comfortable. They were more private and more exhilarating, and it was difficult to stop yourself from just trying it once.

And it didn't hurt that her mother, the Queen, hated it.

Talia turned a corner and lit up, eyes roaming over the man leaning against the wall. "You're out pretty early tonight."

The Voltan lifted his head and turned one bright eye towards her, smiling. "Does that surprise you?"

She shrugged and came a bit closer, hands on her hips. She hadn't been able to find her gloves tonight, so she'd let it rest with just long sleeves, loose shorts, and sandals with tall ribbons that went all the way up to her thighs.

The Voltan, on the other hand, was in his usual state of undress. A collared shirt that was partially untucked and partially unbuttoned, a pair of fingerless gloves on each hand.

"You know, I'll never understand your fashion sense." She clucked her tongue. "People wear real gloves for a good reason, Lev."

"Oh? If that's so, then why are your hands bare?" He leaned closer as she stepped into his personal space. "Tempting fate, tonight, Talia?"

She rolled her eyes and elbowed him in the side, laughing once. "Whatever, it's my business. Do you have anything tonight?"

"Depends on what you want from me." He leaned back again, looking at her through his lashes. "Hm?"

"I'm thinking about staying simple and visiting my aunt nita." She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "Problem with that?"

"Nope." He popped his 'p'. "But payment first. You know that."

She nodded and summoned the bag of coins, holding them in his direction.

They'd only done this a hundred times before.

"Want to count it?"

"I know you're good for it." He pulled the bag from her fingers, then held another bag in front of him.

They'd been exchanging these two small bags since they met, her money for his drugs.

"Want to count it?" He asks her, matching her tone from a moment before.

"As if, I know you wouldn't cross me." She offered a smile and moved to stand in front of him. "But I have a question."

"Hm?"

"Why do you do this? I mean, it's very lucrative, but if the Queen- the real queen- finds out, it won't be pretty."

He shrugged. "Sometimes people don't have any other options. Its not like normal people have everything handed to them."

And even as he says it, she takes the second bag, small and silky soft.

She doesn't recognize that their fingers brush until the colors erupt.

He steps forward to catch her, even though both of them were caught with the wonder of it.

That was the one thing about ephedia...

As soon as bare skin brushed bare skin with your soulmate, you could see the world around you for the first time, clearly. Colorful.

Everyone knew it, and at some point the people had become scared of it. Hands were covered, skin was hidden. What if you touched your soulmate in a busy crowd and didn't know who it was? What if your soulmate wasn't honest, or used a spell to falsify the colors? It was hard to know what was and wasn't true when the only way to experience it was to find your "the one".

Talia had always expected it to be some stuffy prince or princess, someone who would be boring and sweet and ask her to come to bed on time every night.

Instead, here were the colors.

His eyes were so, so blue.

It felt silly that she hadn't been able to realize that before.

Talia's mouth opened enough to let a soft "oh" out, and he pulled her closer into his space, eyes roaming over her face. It was so unguarded, so open, that she could tell it was real.

He wasn't pulling a trick on her.

"You're..." He whispers, one calloused hand lifting.

There's a loud clang further down the alleyway, and Talia wrenches herself from his grip, face red- she loved having a word for the blush rising over her ears and slipping down her neck- and bolted for home.

Sue her, she'd panicked.

* * *

Deep breaths, deep breaths.

Oh, screw it, how could she try to be calm right now?

She actually knew her soulmate. Sure, she knew nothing about him, but she knew who he was! He was someone she trusted not to hurt her, and someone she knew could never bore her. And the look of bewilderment on his face as he realized the same things she had, she didn't want to think about losing that.

Talia bit her lip and fell back onto her bed, bouncing slightly

The world was colorful now, and everything was so overwhelming. Her eyes were a golden amber, her hair a pale blue. Her shirt that night had been a soft violet, and her shorts were dark blue, and the ribbons sliding up her legs were white. The gems on her bracelet were blue and the metal was gold.

Her room was an explosion of color, soft fabrics and gorgeous furniture accumulated over thousands of years by her family. She was filled with new wonder over each piece, the swirls of color throughout them, curious if the original owner had seen the soft greens and violets, the teals and whites and blushes.

Talia closed her eyes and rolled over to press her nose to her arm and sigh.

But what was she going to do about Lev?

He was a voltan, nonroyal, and she was sure her mother wouldn't approve. Mom, on the other hand, was softer and would simply be excited to meet the fates' planned love of her favorite daughter's life. Izira...

Maybe the crown princess would support the relationship. Maybe she'd trust Talia's judgement and support her little sister in whatever she did, especially if it led to happiness.

Or maybe she'd follow mother's footsteps.

There was really no way to tell.

And then there was Lev.

Would he be angry at her for getting spooked and running off? The world was overwhelming enough without counting in the concern that he wouldn't want anything to do with her. So what should she do?

Talia groaned and rolled the opposite direction, burying her face in something soft and dark blue.

She feels a hand rest on her back and freezes.

"Zi?" She mumbles.

"Yes. What's got you all pouty? Tired of breaking the rules yet?"

Izira knew about her habits and didn't approve. Talia usually didn't care, but tonight she pressed her face to her sister's leg and threw an arm over Izira's waist.

"I think I messed up."

"I could have told you that." The sound of the eye roll is evident, Izira busying herself with finding the bottom of her sister's loose braids and pulling the ribbon free. "Want to elaborate?"

"Have you found your soulmate?"

She probably shouldn't be straightforward.

"No, not yet." Izira ruffled her hair. "Why? Want to know how it feels? Just ask Mom."

"I..."

There's a pause.

"Did... did you?"

Talia doesn't answer.

Izira combed her fingers through Talia's hair, nails brushing comfortingly against her scalp.

"No matter what you do, don't let them get away." She said firmly, then patted her back sharply. "Sit up! I have a present for you."

Talia sat up slowly, sure that a tear or two had smeared down her cheeks by now.

Izira offered a smile and brushed them away. "I wasn't going to give this to you until you found them, and you did, so I can't hold onto it anymore. It wouldn't be fair." She opened her hand and her magic circle summoned a tiny portal, and bracelet falling into her hands. It was made of pieces of thin blue crystal and gold beads, runes etched everywhere she could see.

"What does it do?"

"The runes are simply to wish luck and honesty, trust and a happy marriage-"

Talia felt her cheeks going red again. "Hey! I'm not even dating him yet- I ran away because I was scared."

Admitting it outloud made her feel ashamed. How must Lev feel?

Izira tipped her chin back up. "Then go get him, Talia. Get him and give him this and don't let go."

* * *

She hadn't wasted any time.

She grabbed a cloak and threw it on as she tore out of the castle, not letting herself be distracted by any of the beautiful colors. She slid down the banisters and made plates of crystal to jump across. The lights of the pavestones glitter in soft violets and teals across her ankles, and her hair gets everywhere.

Twisting turns that she'd known since she was a child, the spots she'd become more familiar with in this prohibition, every place where they'd ever met, all racing through her mind as she passed them. She wished she'd forgone gloves sooner, that she'd kissed him when she had the chance.

Would he even want her?

In the end, it wouldn't matter. She'd be there for him.

She rounds the final corner, chest heaving, and has to grab a pole to keep from tripping.

There were two figures in front of Lev, each in a silky cloak, a pattern of scales near the bottom, a fur trim at the hoods.

She knew what they were. Who sent them.

Gramorr.

Gramorr was a tycoon of the borealin drugs. He practically controlled the entire flow through Xeris, and had a stranglehold on Nell and the capital, with power growing every year. She'd never gotten anywhere near that, though, because she wasn't crazy.

And here were two of his goons, likely high up when considering those cloaks, standing in front of her soulmate.

At first she couldn't hear Lev, but then the goons made it easier.

"What have we told you? You have to give part of your revenue to the boss. No matter how much you make and how independent you think you are, at the end of the day you are allowed to sell on these streets because his mighty lord of darkness allows you to!"

Talia rolled her eyes. She might be a rebellious princess, but she'd never want to get close to that man. She didn't trust like that.

"And I promised I would, but you two came early." And there's Lev's silky voice, hands rising to placate the goons. "I'll have it next week, if you-"

"Don't say back off." The other goon, clearly an effeminate voice, snaps.

"Be patient." Lev finishes.

"I don't think you actually have it. See, I think you just want us off your back so that you can weasel around and leech money off our turf without ever having to pay the consequences." The first goon, a boy who sounded terrible with words, added.

The second pipes up again. "Well we think you need to pay up tonight. Either hand us the money now, take us to it, or come with us to talk to you-know-who and explain to him how you've used his hospitality for your own gain."

Okay, she'd just about had it.

Before Lev gets out another word, Talia steps around the corner, laughing once and drawing everyone's attention to her.

"You know, I think it's actually the Queen's hospitality that any of you are still here." She started to walk closer, noticing the confusion on her soulmate's face, but also the glitter in his eyes.

"And who is this?" The effeminate goon waves a hand in Talia's direction. "I thought you spoke for yourself."

"Well she's clearly doing a better job." Lev grinned. "Tell 'em!"

"Go back to wherever you came from, this isn't your fight." The first goon says, pulling his hood down. He has a shock of maroon hair and an eyeroll to rival her own. "We're busy and he's scum, so get over it and go home or whatever."

"Home to the Queen, my mother?" She pulls the hood of her own cloak down slowly, lifting her eyebrows.

Both of the goons freeze.

"Run along now, or whatever, and maybe I won't report you idiots."

They grab each other and disappear with a low pop.

"You came back."

Talia turned to him. "You deal with them?"

"Not at the moment." He's smooth and she wants to fight him, but she also wants to see him a bit better.

Talia sighs and walks up to him, taking his hand slowly. As long as their skin is brushing, things are even more vivid, and she feels drunk suddenly. She manages not to let go, marveling over how their skin looks together, the delicate way the colors meshed and swirled before her.

"You look surprised."

"I'm... I am."

"By the fact that your soulmate is a nobody?"

He almost sounds bitter.

"By how beautiful you are."

She looks up at him slowly, offering a slow smile. "You're so beautiful. I love your eyes."

His cheeks start to redden against his will, and he looks away. "Now that's not fair. You caught me off guard."

"Caught you off guard? With a compliment?" She coos, reaching up with her free hand to catch his chin.

He opens his mouth to ask what she's doing right as their lips meet.


End file.
